CHAMBERSBURG - It has been controversial ever since the first conversations began nearly a year ago, but now the buzz around Chambersburg Area School District's dress code is hotter than ever.

After nearly two weeks of chaos over crew necks, distress over designs and claims of bullying and harassment, it all came to a head Thursday night when about 100 parents gathered in the backyard of a private residence to air their concerns.

Denise Martin, a mother to two daughters in second and 11th grades, summed up their reasons for being there: "I think our biggest concern is everybody is looking at us like we are a bunch of raging parents that don't want our spoiled brats to conform to a (dress code) that's shoved down our throats. That's not the issue at all. We all want a dress code, we all want our kids to look respectful. Ninety-nine percent of our kids looked respectful way before this dress code was implemented. I just want the community to know it's not the dress code we're fighting. It's the enforcements, it's the intensity that it's being enforced (at)."

Parents have spoken at meetings of the school board and the dress and grooming committee - the entity that developed and is now evaluating the dress code - but feel their opportunities were too limited and that their words fell on deaf ears.

According to Sally Brooks, the parent who planned Thursday's gathering, school officials have essentially said they will change nothing, no matter what.

"That's why everybody's mad. I want to give them a forum to vent and have their problems heard. This way they have a chance to say their piece," she said.

In a prepared statement, Superintendent Joe Padasak said the district has heard feedback both for and against the dress code. He stressed that he is taking concerns seriously, but that he does not "anticipate any formal changes at this time."

Scared at school

Intense enforcement of the dress code has created an environment students are afraid to even be in, according to parents.

Martin said her daughters used to love school, but now they want to avoid it. Her oldest daughter especially has had troubles.

"Her feelings as a 15-year-old, is that this is the opportunity for another, and these were her exact words, 'closet creep to have every reason to investigate me from head to toe and get away with it, and using the dress code as the reasoning for that,'" Martin said. "I don't think they took into consideration the effect it would have on girls psychologically."

Parents say that if anything is distracting to education, it is the atmosphere students must deal with at school every day.

"This is not what our school is about," Brooks said. "They're saying they don't want to have these kids bullied for their clothes and the administrators, teachers and the security guards are the bullies. They've turned it completely around."

Padasak said: "It is not the intentions of the district to make any child feel uncomfortable due to their choice of dress. In fact, part of the reasoning behind the new guidelines was to help 'level the playing field,' so children do not feel pressured to have certain styles of clothing."

Collarbones: Sexy?

The uncomfortable feelings some students have are a direct result of the dress code's strict enforcement. The biggest issue has been what exactly a crew neck is. The district's flier on permitted and prohibited items, which all students were advised to reference when choosing what to wear this school year, does not give a specific definition.

April Tracy bought her daughter Elizabeth, a freshman, all shirts that said "crew neck" on the tag. But because her collarbone was visible she was called out for a dress code violation.

"Because my collarbone is so sexy!" Elizabeth said.

Elizabeth has reverted to wearing her brother's clothing because it seems to be the only stuff that works at school. Her mother added that the neckline on boys' crew-neck shirts actually touches the neck, when those for girls do not.

"I think this discriminates against the girls in the district. Because if you go to the store, in the lady's section (their crew-neck shirts are) not this high," April Tracy said, pointing to the base of her neck.

Another mother, who only wanted to be known as Tracy, said she bought her daughter many of the same style, girls' crew-neck shirts in a variety of colors. The girl had worn one every day of school so far, but it was not until Thursday that she was called out for it and received in-school suspension.

"The worst part was, afterward she went back to get her stuff out of her locker and another student wearing the same shirt, different color, asked why she was sent to ISS and she said because it was a scoop neck. That girl said, 'Well I have the same shirt on and nothing was said.'" she said.

Padasak said he met with faculty and administrators this week to smooth out the definition of a crew neck.

"If a child has a shirt that looks like a crew neck, but doesn't look like a traditional 'T-shirt' crew neck, then it is a crew neck," he said. "I have also received reports concerning staff asking students to 'prove' that the shirt under a scarf is within the guidelines. If the student appears to be in line with the apparel guidelines, our staff will take that at face value."

It's elementary

The dress code was meant to eliminate distracting factors from the education environment. But parents of elementary students do not understand how shirts with Dora the Explorer, Scooby-Doo or other characters distract anyone.

It is almost impossible to find a shirt without characters or other designs in the children's section at many stores, said Heather Gouker, mother to a girl in first grade.

Children who come to school wearing anything that goes against code are called out and, if it's a second offense, punished. Little children should not have to worry about this, Gouker said.

"They are not choosing their clothes, their parents are," said mother Emma Mercado.

Too much money

A crew neck is one of the items on the dress-code flier that is wide open to interpretation. Students also claim they are getting punished for things not mentioned on the flier - such as colored bandages and colored socks.

And it makes parents mad that they have to buy a new set of school clothes when they already spent hundreds of dollars on the first one.

"I had to take pants to my other daughter (at Scotland Elementary School) today and they're telling me to shop at the Gap and J.C. Penneys," said Adrienne Davis. "And I'm like, not everybody has the money to shop at those places. I have three kids and I can't afford that."

She added that the school board and dress committee should have considered that not all children come from a home with two parents, both having good jobs.

Padasak said that he is working with schools' parent organizations to find solutions, but in the meantime, parents should contact their building principal or himself "immediately."

Embarrassed

Several parents claimed that their children are ashamed to even say they go to school in CASD.

"I remember being in Chambersburg and, that high school used to scream Chambersburg pride. People loved it," Martin said, as she was tearing up. "I get emotional when I talk about it, but I want my kids to experience it. At this rate, they're embarrassed."

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Amber South can be reached at asouth@publicopinionnews.com and 262-4771.

What they're saying

Superintendent Joe Padasak: "I have been asked on numerous occasions, how many are complying? While the numbers have varied by building and by day, overall 99 percent of our approximately 9,000 (students) are in compliance with the apparel guidelines. I personally spoke to a few high school students yesterday and asked for an honest opinion. All indicated that at first, they didn't like the thought of the code and, yes, it may make them think a little harder about what to wear in the morning. In the end, they were in agreement that students look better this year. In fact, one indicated she felt this would help her be ready for when she graduates."

Kiersten Myers, sophomore at Career Magnet School: "They didn't even enforce that (the old code) last year, whereas this year they're enforcing us to wear things that aren't embracing ourselves to be an individual."

Azaria Leedy, seventh-grader: "Today I got in trouble for wearing three colored Band-Aids because my leg was bleeding. "They made me go to the nurse to get three clear Band-Aids because it was a distraction to kids learning."

Kerri Deibel, mom and creator of the "Parents against CASD dress code" Facebook page: "What's wrong with a logo on a T-shirt? Is it really that distracting from the education? And honestly what gives the school district the right to tell a kid what color hair they can have? That's ridiculous. I've heard on my page that kids are getting in trouble for colored socks."

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